


To Each to His Own

by LurkerUnchanged



Category: Philippine Cinematic Universe
Genre: Andres most of all, But will try to be HISTORICALLY ACCURATE, Canonical Character Death, Does it count as slow burn when it takes them at least a decade to meet each other, Historically Inaccurate because obviously Rizal and Andres dont have sex, I just love these boys too much, I want to portray their history as much as I can, Just want to repeat that here because some people miss the ones in bold letters, M/M, the most they did was eye fuck each other and exchanged "gentlemanly handshakes" dont @ me
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-04
Updated: 2019-09-04
Packaged: 2020-10-06 22:27:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,139
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20514497
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LurkerUnchanged/pseuds/LurkerUnchanged
Summary: They're 2 wildly different men, ascholarand aplebian[1] , anillustradoand akatipuneroand how we've come to know them in history,the equivalent of the pen and the sword. Yet they have far more things in common than they would never know.History has its ways of shaping heroes as how people would want them to be seen but before they were known to the world they were just Rizal and Andres.





	To Each to His Own

**Author's Note:**

> So this story has been brewing for 4 years, went unfinished (I've written the beginning, the climax and the end but the pacing is off and Im hoping to fill in what needs to be filled in) and unposted but I did promise friend that I would give it to him as a birthday gift and so my plan is to post every other day and hopefully this story eventually gets completed. I'm not sending him the link to this story though until its completed. Some of the parts have been written at wildly different points of my incredibly short life so the writing style changes but Im claiming it as poetic justice since this is also a time-lapse story of the boys. RENE you bastard this is for you, who got me into this mess.
> 
> IMPORTANT NOTE: If you see any spelling mistakes please tell me, this is unbetaed and although I've read and reread this there might still be some errors that I miss. So I would greatly appreciate it if you comment it down below. I know how it ruins the experience for some people so I beg you dear readers please help me with this.

Rizal is 8 when he allegedly creates the poem "Sa Aking Mga Kabata" [2].

At this age, Teodora does not see his own son write a full fledged poem. At 8, Rizal does not yet know of the words "kalayaan" nor its closest English equivalent liberty [3]. Rizal does not know of the country's suffering, nor his family's struggle.

The Mercado's as was the family's surname, know only of peace.

All Teodora's memories of the Rizal at age 8 is him listening to her stories as he rests his head on her lap; Rizal sitting in front of her as he listens to Teodora's teachings writing with a quill and ink, eager to experience the world all around him, his eyes unmarred by reality.

During those times, Rizal stays close to his mother as he can, finding time to laze on her lap and feeling her warmth in general. They stay like this in the morning when Rizal has no classes in catechism and his sisters surround him at the _sala._ They stay like this in the afternoon when the light of the sun is scorching and the children stay inside the house, Rizal under Teodora's loving gaze as she speaks to her son while she sews. And they stay like this at night when Rizal's sisters all huddle for warmth, their mother rocking her chair as he and his siblings learn about the fables his mother tell - Philippine stories spoken in Spanish tongue beside the lamplight.

Rizal clings to his mother like vines clinging to a tree but mostly like a spoiled child does, and Teodora allows him. His sisters complain of the favoritism. Paciano, his brother, scoffs at his childish demeanor but favors him all the same and Francisco, his father, laughs, discourages it at first but allows it all the same as he ruffles his hair. Let the child remain a child for as long as he can, the man thinks lovingly.

Rizal remembers his family's gaze as they do, his mother's smile the sweetest. At this age, the closeness between Rizal and Teodora stays, as warm as the summer heat that touches the field on a windy day, nurturing the fields as they grow.

At the age of 8, Rizal does not write a poem, but grows and is nurtured. If thoughts come by Rizal of words waiting to be written it would be the wish of peaceful days and the unyielding warmth his family provides, far from the realities the Philippines face.

Likewise, Teodora remembers Rizal not writing a poem, but her family, happy and free from Spanish scrutiny.

Teodora holds her memory of her family close as she watches Rizal leave for Spain.

Yeas later all Teodora will remember is Rizal still 8, guilty but eager to leave her side, as she watches him leave for Spain.

* * *

Andres is 6 when he tries to understand what his father does.

He is not a stranger when it comes to the profession of being a tailor but there are things that he still does not know.

When his father, Santiago, hugs him after a long day of work, he smells strongly of the plants that the indios carry. Pineapple fiber, his father says. Tobacco, his mother, Catalina, supplies somewhat in disgust. He accepts them as fact being the son of a tailor and the daughter of a supervisor of a tobacco company. The smell of tobacco and fiber becomes a calming presence for the years to come, but at the age of 6 he is acquaints himself and like everything around him tries to learn and understand.

At the age of 6 Andres understands the meaning of admirable in the form of his father. All he knows is that his father is that he is an admirable man, or so his mother says.

He asks his mother the meaning of the world admirable and he is left more questions than answers. Still he tries and understands how clothes could make other people as happy as they were.

He comes to the conclusion after seeing various people come into his house with smiles equivalent to his father. He tries to understand the joy his father gives to others and tries to understand how he does it. 

All sorts of people come into their house praising his father, as if he did his chores perfectly like Andres does. And even in the streets, Andres learns to be patient as his father is stopped by the people and engage in very lengthy conversation. Even the friars, who he did not like the looks of, would look less intimidating in his father's presence. In time, he learns the praises the people sing when he stays by his father’s side but is still left wondering.

Women of soft _camesas_ and _paneulos_ praise him as artful, gentlemanly and other words his mother scowl at when she overhears. She asks his mother if the word ladykiller is bad and he gets a fervent nod. When he asks if his father is bad he chuckles and ruffles his hair giving him another unclear answer “You must find out yourself Andres.” His mother just slaps his father in the head. He resolved not to find out in his mother's presence. 

Men of stiff_ barongs_ praise his father as hardworking, honest and kind. A men among men he hears them say. He does not understand what they say but he assumes this to be a compliment by the way they’re eyes light up in admiration when they do so and ruffles his hair like a puppy. He does not like the feeling but he has long equated the action as a show of affection from his father. 

Andres learns and draws from his own conclusion that an admirable man must be someone who brought smiles to people's faces, like his father does. When he comes to this conclusion and happily tells his parents, his father ruffles his hair and tells him that what he said is right. Knowing that he was correct, he stops listening just after his father tell him that it was more than that. 

From then on, Andre's being his father's boy, resolves to become admirable. And his father never fails to remind him that he his growing into a fine one. Feeling his father's pride in him helps him continue. 

Years later, as the seed of the KKK begins to form in his mind, he recalls the memory and his resolve as a child at the age of 6. If only it was easy to make his fellow Filipino feel at ease. 

His thoughts would eventually drift to an image of his father on his bed, ruffling his hair and calling him his admirable boy one last time [4], soothing him and at the same time preparing him to let go. 

**Author's Note:**

> [1] They're both technically mestizo's which is a step higher than indios but because of their upbringing they have wildly different lifestyles. Rizal himself was supported by his affluent father and his brother while Andres was orphaned and had to work hard to sustain his family's needs despite his Spanish ancestry.
> 
> [2] During our time, Philippine textbooks used to portray that Rizal was the one who wrote the poem but Prof. Ambeth Ocampo wrote an article that may not necessarily be the case. If you want to read his defense on why check out this  link 
> 
> [3] Rizal only encounters the word kalayaan when he was 21 years old when he had difficulty translating text from German to Tagalog
> 
> [4] Andres' father dies of tuberculosis when he was 13, which prompted Andres to support his family for a living


End file.
